The Ultimate Healthy and Clean Vegan Protein Cheat Sheet

Protein is a necessary dietary staple. In the body, amino acids, the building blocks of life, are made by ribosomes located in the endoplasmic reticulum of cells. These proteins then form tissues, organs, organ systems, and make up the entire human body.

Proteins also play a key role as enzymes, catalyzing or speeding up chemical reactions by reducing the amount of activation energy a given reaction requires. But, humans can only create 10 of the 20 essential amino acids, and amino acids are not stored like fat and starch in the body, which is why consuming protein is so important.

To acquire the right amount of protein, note that not all dietary sources are created equal. Clean proteins are those with minimal additives and that have been sustainably harvested and grown. They can also be simple sources that are free of pesticides and are not manufactured by some enigmatic company. Choosing the right proteins for ingestion is paramount to maintaining a healthy diet, so from Green Monster to Green Monster, we give you a list of the top seven (the lucky number in Japan) cleanest sources of protein: